B&B HOTELS is one of the most important economic hotel groups in Europe with more than 730 hotels in 15 countries, in Europe, Brazil. B&B HOTELS grew exponentially in 2022 with the opening of 97 new hotels, and intends to continue this dynamic. B&B HOTELS Poland is part of that plan, with the mission to become a market leader in Poland’s value-for-money hotels sector by the end of this decade.
“We are currently running 14 hotels and have already grown the network by 40% this year,” says Jakub Bilik, President and Managing Director of B&B HOTELS Poland. “Our ambition is to have at least 50 hotels across the country by 2030. We are growing with long-term leases through hotel takeovers, building conversions and new builds.”
The company’s business model is built around being the smart choice for its guests, its employees, and its business partners. Jakub Bilik is B&B HOTELS Poland’s President and Managing Director, and when we speak to him it is a special anniversary for him at the company.
“It’s just been a year since I’ve been with this company” Bilik tells us. “It has been a great journey. We have expanded our team with several specialists in the areas of revenue management, finance, development, marketing, quality and legal. We are pushing the needle in Poland.”
In a role like this, you might expect Bilik to have come with a long history in the hotels sector, but as a matter of fact, he brings with him a wealth of experience from a huge variety of customer-facing industries.
“For over 20 years, I’ve been on the frontline of various businesses that are in the process of expansion. I have worked in real estate with firms ranging from petrol stations with Shell, through to retail chains, restaurants, and quick service outlets such as Pizza Hut and KFC.”
In taking on the job of building and expanding B&B HOTELS Poland’s profile, Bilik has looked to the company’s unique selling points and a robust set of core values that place people at their centre.
“It is not just written on the wall, it is in all our daily activities,” Bilik says.
Bilik points to the Covid pandemic as an example of those values in action. The Group, as a whole, refrained from layoffs during lockdown, when many businesses in the hotel sector cut staffing. By the time the industry was ready to open up again, B&B HOTELS were able to open up immediately, attracting and serving guests to quickly achieve results comparable to its pre-pandemic figures.
“We relied heavily on our people and the teams that were in place,” Bilik points out.
Because B&B HOTELS Poland is a growing company, it attracts people who are looking to grow alongside the company as their career develops. People have started to observe that the hotel company is becoming one of the fastest-growing hotel operator in Poland.
“The market has started to notice what we are doing, and that is coming from the most recent recruitments and new hotel openings” Bilik tells us. “We have been able to attract people from other leading companies and for them, the fact that we are growing is our most important attribute.”
A New Age of Hospitality
But while B&B HOTELS Poland has a promising trajectory, there is no denying that the post-pandemic industry is a very different one from the one before 2019.
We are all operating in an environment with less stability than before 2019.
“If we look back, we have been enjoying the continuous growth journey for many years,” says Bilik. “But now we have had Covid and other shockwaves, all these events that led to rising pressure on prices and inflation on both sides of the Atlantic.”
With inflation comes higher interest rates, fewer development opportunities, less growth, and a possible cooling of the property development market.
“Rising prices for the whole industry also have an impact on our opportunity to attract talent and people to operate our premises,” Bilik says. “We all need to find a way to be leaner and more streamlined while maintaining our highest quality and standards. That has become trickier with rising inflation and minimum salaries.”
At the same time, the customers are changing. The pandemic has changed the way people want to spend their time or conduct their professional work, particularly in terms of hybrid and remote work arrangements.
“As a hotel company we can benefit from these changes as we find new ways of attracting and serving our guests” Bilik says.
The market is changing. Companies that would typically go to five-star hotels are changing their budgets, and value-orientated brands like B&B HOTELS are becoming the smart choice for corporate clients.
“We are also attracting families and leisure travel customers who want to explore different Polish or European cities during city breaks at the weekend, so we are adapting to meet a lot of different needs,” Bilik says.
The Relationship Business
Ultimately, the hospitality business is not about buildings or even locations, it is about people, and B&B HOTELS Poland is the product of the talent it has brought into the company.
“When we attract talents, an opportunity to grow together with growth of our company is the key argument” Bilik says. “People with professional background who join us today, can see further opportunities for themselves. We are not rigid; we are constantly developing. We are entrepreneurial, we adapt quickly, so everyone who joins us has a chance to make a significant impact.”
As well as growing with its own employees, B&B HOTELS Poland is also looking for other partners to grow with.
“We are open for cooperation with property investors and developers to create a working relationship not just for one location, but many locations,” Bilik points out. “We are looking for partners to participate in the development or redevelopment of Polish cities. Those partners can join us and grow together with us. It is a fantastic opportunity for investors with funding but no idea what direction to go in.”
Bilik’s vision is for B&B HOTELS Poland to be opening hotels in the three-star category, becoming the preferred choice for business and private travellers. We have a very high customer satisfaction score which is a key element of differentiation for us.
“We will also be developing and changing our technology to correspond to our operations in the future. We will have more integrated interfaces where our guests will be able to check in, check out and pick up a room all from their fingertips,” Bilik tells us, but still reminds us of the human element. “At the same time, they will be able to contact our personnel whenever necessary.”
